Category Archives: Köln

If you ever decide to visit Germany….try to make it to Köln (Cologne). I love this city. They usually have some exhibition going on…so book your hotels early!! The key place to visit is the Köln Cathedral. Not only inside, but outside and across the train bridge. This is the view from across the bridge. A quick 10 minute walk and there are many spots to set up a tripod for this shot. I was here for a very cold 2 hours. I took tons of pics. I always try something different if I can..so I added the angle. Kinda cool! Enjoy!

While in Köln last winter…my goal after work was to head out to this vantage point overlooking the railway bridge with Köln Cathedral in the background. It has got to be on of the best shots to take in the city. It was in February…and a bit chilly this nite. I was here for about 2hours taking shots waiting for the blue hour. I have posted a shot at that time before. This was my sunset shot in HDR. I always love pink skies…the lighting is always magical! Germany has so many great cities…this is one of the top 5 for sure to visit!

Before heading to Germany a few weeks back, my good friend Kay Gaensler mentioned that there is an App for the Deutsche Bahn (Trains) in Germany for the IPhone. It is called DB Navigator. A wonderful an easy to use app! After I downloaded I opened up the app and you first see of photo of a Train Station (Hauptbahnhof). When I met up with Kay, he told me that the photo was the Köln Hauptbahnhof. Great….as I knew was going to be there the end of that week. I wanted to take the exact shot! Here is the photo from the app…

Close! I did shot it in HDR and thought a selective color might look cool. Technology can give you photo inspiration! LOL Have fun and go get that picture you want to take! Its out there!

While in Germany last week, I stayed in a wonderful town – Köln (Cologne). This shot was my target! I took a walk across the bridge about 5:20 PM and waited for sunset at 6:15 PM. At this location there is a nice viewing platform. I walked around for a bit and scouted the best view. This was it. I was here until 8 PM…shooting HDR’s non-stop until it became dark. There were a couple locals set up and taking shots along with me. Luckily they spoke English and we chatted every so often. It made the time go by fast. It was a bit cold! Probably about 25 degrees with a 10-15 mph wind! Yikes!

As the sun set, the Kölner Dom lit up and looked stunning with the blue hour sky in the background. This is the standard shot for this city..but I had to take it! One of my favorites! Hope the people shooting with me got some great shots as well!! Earlier when I arrived into the city, I visited the Dom…amazing!!! I’ll post some shots here soon! I enjoyed this city so much that I may go back this summer for a nite??

Info from the web: Köln is Germany’s fourth-largest city (after Berlin, Hamburg and Munich), and is the largest city both in the German Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants. It is one of the oldest cities in Germany, having been founded by the Romans in the year 38 BC. The name is derived from that of the Roman settlement, Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium.

Cologne lies on the River Rhine. The city’s famous Cologne Cathedral (Kölner Dom) is the seat of the Catholic Archbishop of Cologne. The University of Cologne (Universität zu Köln) is one of Europe’s oldest universities. Cologne is a major cultural center of the Rhineland and has a vibrant arts scene. Cologne is home to more than 30 museums and hundreds of galleries. Exhibitions range from local ancient Roman archeological sites to contemporary graphics and sculpture. The Cologne Trade Fair hosts a number of trade shows such as Art Cologne, the International Furniture Fair (IMM) and the Photokina.